I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tape construction for bonding a sports grip such as a golf grip to a club shaft and, in particular, to a pressure sensitive adhesive tape to bond a grip to a golf club which is activatable using either the traditional solvents or simple soap-water.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Normally tacky and pressure sensitive adhesive tapes are widely used commercially for a variety of applications. Conventional pressure sensitive tapes comprise a carrier with normally tacky adhesive on one side or both sides to suit a particular bonding application. Such adhesives are normally composed of a rubber polymer, either natural or synthetic, and a resin or resins compatible with the rubber, to impart an inherently tacky character to the adhesive. Such adhesive could also be an inherently tacky acrylic polymer, polyvinyl acetate, or copolymer of either one or both.
Designing an adhesive composition to suit the requirements of different bonding application is very demanding. Bonding two similar or dissimilar flat surfaces is one application. Bonding similar or different curved surfaces capable of being positioned or fitted to each other is another area of application. Bonding strongly a shaft into a tubular member, rigid or non-rigid as a sleeve is a challenge. Any double sided pressure sensitive adhesive tape could be wound around the shaft to strongly hold the shaft, but pose problems when mounting the taped-shaft into the sleeve to hold the sleeve tight, and form a strongly bonded assembly capable of withstanding rotational torque. It would be near impossible to push the taped shaft into the sleeve without some slip-aid.
The forces associated with sports grips require a strongly bonding adhesive yet one which allows insertion of the shaft into the grip. A widely used process involves wrapping a section of a golf club shaft to be covered with the grip with a tape which adheres to the club shaft. The exterior surface of the tape includes an activatable adhesive. Typically, this exterior adhesive is activatable with a solvent which temporarily creates a slippery surface allowing insertion of the shaft into the grip. The exterior adhesive will then set-up or tackify to create a bond between the grip and the club shaft. Although creating a firm bond while simplifying assembly of the grip to the shaft, the primary disadvantage of the prior known system lies in the disposal of the solvent. Many of the solvents are considered hazardous materials and must be properly disposed of.